Winter Rose
by DreamStar14
Summary: Both Toushirou and Ami have both been waiting for this day for a long time, but no one ever realized that it would come with a price this big.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Here it is. The revised version of Lost and Found, which has been discontinued. Hope you enjoy!

By the way, I have changed many things in this from Lost and Found, so do not think this is just like Lost and Found. It is very different, but the same plot, if you know what I mean. You will also find many references to the famous Ani-Manga Naruto (and Shippuden), so I do not own any of those references.

Summary: Both Toushirou and Ami have secretly waited for this day for a long time. But no one ever realized that it came with a price this big. So what now?

Disclaimer: Tite Kubo owns Bleach. I own only the Ninja side of Soul Society, nothing else.

~1~1~1~1~

Chapter 1: Promotion Day; Jounin Ami's S-rank Mission

"Hitsugaya Ami, I hereby promote you to a Jounin-level Ninja," Hokage Amarante of Team Ten declared to the young white-haired ninja kneeling in front of her. "Suzuki-san, enter the date into the log."

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Kage Suzuki said. "Entering the date September 10th into the log now," she said as she wrote it down.

Ami's turquoise eyes blinked and then closed as the young ninja bowed to her two commanding officers. "Domo arigatou gozaimasu, Hokage-sama. I'll give you all my best and nothing neither more nor less."

She was calm on the outside, but she was having what her friend Naru called a "fidgeting attack". Ami got these all the time.

"You are dismissed." Something in the Hokage's voice informed Ami that the woman was smiling.

Ami stood and turned to face the door. Her bare feet made barely a sound against the wooden floor. As the young ninja put on her navy blue ninja sandals, she thought of nothing else except what she just told her Hokage and Kage both.

_'I'll give you all my best and nothing neither more nor less.'_

Ami smiled. She opened the shouji door and was about to step when her Hokage said, "Oh, and Hitsugaya-san?"

Ami turned to her Hokage. "Yes, Amarante-sama? What is it?"

"Happy birthday. Thirteen in human years today, am I correct?" Ami smiled. Her commanding officer actually remembered. She nodded. "And official age is seventy-eight?"

Ami nodded again. "Yes, Hokage-sama, thank you for remembering."

The Hokage simply smiled.

As soon as Ami closed the shouji door behind her, she was attacked and being suffocated by someone in red and way heavier than herself.

"Ami-chan, congratulations! I'm so glad you made it to Jounin! I can't believe it's only been two years since you were a Genin! Most people usually have to wait five years for a promotion," Hino Reika, raven-black hair in a ponytail and violet eyes, Ami's best friend, said, while squeezing the life slowly out of her friend.

"R-Reika-chan! Can't...breathe..." Ami managed to utter, causing her friend to let go and allow oxygen back into the blue-clothes ninja girl again.

"Gomenasai! But I can't believe it's only been two years."

"It was two years for you too, Reika-chan," Ami reminded her as the two walked down to the Team Ten Mess Hall.

"I know, but I'm still a Chunin. Man, when Third Year Sensei Hachi told us both that we were actually going to go somewhere great, he wasn't kidding," Reika said, violet eyes filled with excitement. "And when he told you that you were a child prodigy, he wasn't kidding about that either."

"Look, Reika-chan, I know what you're thinking," Ami said slowly. "You're thinking that I'll probably be Hokagechou one day, but I'm perfectly happy with where I am already. Moreover, sometimes, it's a pain to be a child prodigy. I know I'm considered one, but I'm only a child." Ami stresses those last five words to Reika on purpose. "And I-"

"-Don't want special treatment for it," Reika finished. "I know, Ami-chan. I've memorized that line ever since your second year in the Academy and me in third."

"Where's Sasuke-kun and Naru-kun?" Ami asked out of the blue, no pun intended for her favorite color was blue.

"Last time I checked, they were in their dorms," Reika said.

"You sure?" Ami asked suspiciously.

"Quite positive, Ami-chan. Would I lie to you?" Reika asked, seriously.

"Only when you're teasing me," Ami said.

"Good point," Reika said. She then saw two figures a ways off. "Oh, speak of the devils, there they are."

The two girls ran up to the two boys, who were next to the Team Ten Mess Hall.

"Meioh Naru," Reika motioned to a blonde in orange, "Tomoe Sasuke," and then motioned to a black-haired boy in blue, "what on earth are you two doing here?"

"Yeah, what's up? No good food in Team Nine's Mess Hall?" Ami teased.

"Shut up, Ami-chan," Naru said. "Our chef is serving sushi with wasabi sauce as the main course. You know I don't like that."

"Yeah, you're point being?" Ami asked.

"Can we just eat lunch with you two?" Sasuke asked, getting to the point before Ami's temper nasty temper got out of hand. He could visibly see a tick mark on the white-haired girl's forehead now.

"You never have to ask, you two," Reika said, as all four friends entered Team Ten's Mess Hall.

For lunch, Team Ten's chef was serving Ami's personal favorite: chicken-flavored ramen. He said to Ami, "Hope you enjoy it!" Here, he gave her a wink. "Made it just for you."

Ami merely blushed and managed to barely whisper a "Thank you", while Sasuke's temper was the one flaring this time. How Ami had managed to keep naive about Sasuke's crush on her was beyond Naru, Reika, and even Sasuke himself.

The four sat at Reika and Ami's usual table, which was by the AC unit. Naru never understood why Ami liked the cold and winter so much. He could barely gather the courage to go outside during the wintertime whenever it snowed. Whenever Naru asked her about this, she always said, "I guess it's in my blood or something, because I don't really understand it either."

In addition, whenever she finished her lunch, Ami always told Reika or whoever was with her at the time to get her a slice of watermelon. Today was no exception. But this time, Reika also came back with the daily newsletter, called "Konoha Daily".

It was actually a magazine, but it pretty much acted like a newspaper. Team Five printed it daily, of course. It was always printed the night before and passed out the next morning. Needless to say, Team Five was nearly always very busy because of it.

Reika was in the extras section, on the horoscope page. She sat down and read "'Aries: Stick with what you know. Discussing matters that are based on assumptions will lead to mistakes that will be difficult to fix. Don't be quick to jump into something that may be filled with empty promises.'"

"Today's not your birthday, Reika-chan. It's April 17th," Naru reminded her.

"I know. I'm just reading the horoscopes today. You know I always read the horoscopes on one of our birthdays, and in case you forgot, today is Ami's birthday. Sasuke, October 29...Ah ha! Here it is. 'Scorpio: Don't be fooled by an emotional plea to keep you from experiencing something new. You need to get out and participate. Follow through with whatever you feel passionate about, and you will make progress. It's time to make a clean break.'"

"Nice," Sasuke said. "Sounds about right."

"Read mine," Naru said.

"Ok, Naru, December 5th...Found it! 'Sagittarius: Rethink your strategy, and you will realize you may have had ulterior motives. Before you make a huge mistake that will affect your personal relationships, it is best to take a moment to hash over the good and the bad that you've experienced.'"

"I agree with Sasuke. It sounds pretty much the same as us," Naru said.

"But, what about mine?" Ami asked.

"I was just about to read it, Ami-chan. Here is yours. 'Happy Birthday: A change of plans will lead you in an interesting new direction. Be open to new experiences and acquaintances. Let your creative dreams take over; you will realize that you have something to offer that others will pay for. This can be an engaging year for you personally and professionally. Love is highlighted, and promises can be made.' And you're a Virgo, right?"

Ami nodded. "But that which you just read, Reika-chan...I can't help but feel like it's really dead on. I don't know what the feeling is, but I just can't shake it."

It was silent for a moment, before Reika, Sasuke, and Naru all dragged Ami outside and sat her down on a bench in Team Ten's watermelon patch.

"You know what it's time for, right?" Reika asked Ami, with a knowing smile.

"Yeah..."

Before Ami could go any further, Reika set her wrapped birthday present in Ami's lap.

"You didn't have to, you know," Ami said shyly.

"We wanted to, Ami-chan," Naru said, "Now open it."

Ami did so. What she got from Reika was the next volume of the popular manga "Chappy the Rabbit". What she got from Naru was a beautiful, blue kimono in her exact size. When she asked how he knew, he managed to stutter out, "The Fireworks Festival is coming up soon, and I noticed that you didn't have a kimono for it, so I made you one." Ami's ears perked up when she heard this. She loved it when people made clothes for her. She had an entire wardrobe full of hand-made clothes, given to her by others. What she got from Sasuke was two encyclopedias of all the known jutsus of ice, that being one of them, and healing, which was the second.

"I still don't understand how you have two elements," Sasuke said, as Ami looked through the Ice volume. "A ninja normally only has one. For example, mine is time, Reika's is fire, and Naru's is lightning."

"I told you before, I don't understand either," Ami said, closing the ice volume. "There are a lot of things about myself that I don't understand, but one day, I will. So don't worry about it."

Just then, Team One's Kage interrupted them. He bowed slightly to them and said, "Hitsugaya Ami, the Hokagechou would like to speak with you in his office. Come quickly, please. He said it's urgent."

Ami nodded and waved to her three friends, giving her presents to Reika and telling her to put them in Ami's room. She then followed the Team One Kage by shunpo'ing all the way to the Team One office.

"Hokage Hoshimoto-sama, you wanted to see me?" I asked, bowing to the old ninja. he may have been old, but he was actually really wise.

"Yes, I did," He said. He turned to his Kage, "Leave us." The man did so and closed the shouji doors.

"Sir?" Ami was confused.

"Have you heard of the Sereitei?"

"Yes, Sir. But only the name and the fact that it's different from Konoha, our city."

"You are correct. It is different. In addition, that is the way I had wanted people to know about Sereitei for many years. However, I cannot avoid it forever. In the Sereitei, there is a group of Soul Warriors known as the Gotei Thirteen, or the Shinigami."

"Are they much like the Shinobi Thirteen, Sir?" Ami asked. The old man nodded.

"To be honest, Hitsugaya-san, they were once our allies, but something tore us apart many years ago. I have a mission for you, Hitsugaya-san."

Ami blinked in surprise. A mission directly from the Hokagechou himself was very rare. If you managed to get one, you and others would consider yourself lucky.

"A mission for me, Sir?" Ami repeated.

"Yes," Hoshimoto said. "For some reason, you are the only one who can get inside the Sereitei without much fuss and renew the Ally Contract, or Covenant, between the Ninjas and the Shinigami."

"Whom do I renew it with?" Ami asked, mysteriously dreading the answer.

"The Soutaichou of the Gotei Thirteen."

Ami was silent for a minute. "Sir, why are you making me do this and no one else?"

"You're not going to renew the Contract all on your own. I am."

"Huh? Please elaborate, Sir."

"I am coming to the Sereitei with you..."

Ami got to bed late that night. She had stayed the rest of the day with the Hokagechou, making the plans for the mission that would commence the very next day. When they were done, he told her to go and get plenty of rest and that they would leave at exactly 9:30 AM sharp tomorrow morning.

Ami pulled to covers to her chin and fell into the world of sleep.

She dreamed of, however, a boy around her height, maybe taller, with spiky white hair like her own and teal eyes, just a shade darker than her own eyes. He wore a black shihakusho, with a white haori over it. On the back of the haori was the symbol for ten. He also had a tall sword that was strapped to his back by a green sash with a golden brooch.

She heard him say _'Imoto-chan...'_ before she woke up the next morning in a cold sweat.

~Chapter 2 Preview~

Ami: I just had this crazy dream! Help me, someone, what does it mean? And don't you think the horoscope thing was a little crazy too? (gets kicked in the face by Kon)

Kon: You're stealing my screen time! And who the hell are you?

Ami: What screen time?

Kon: Shut up!

Reika: (sweatdrop) Next time on Bleach – Winter Rose: Day of Reckoning; The Surprising Reunion. Please tune in next time!

~1~1~1~1~

Let me put your minds at ease: Genin is Level 1 (equivalent to unseated), Chunin is Level 2 (equivalent to double digit seats), Jounin is Level 3 (equivalent to single digit seats), Kage is Level 4 (equivalent to Lieutenant), Hokage is Level 5 (Equivalent to Captain), and Hokagechou (Equivalent to Head Captain).

**"Domo arigatou gozaimasu."** - Japanese for "Thank you very much."

**"Gomenasai."** – Japanese for "I'm sorry."

**"Imoto-chan"** - Japanese for "little sister"

**Shouji door** - Japanese style of a sliding door

**Wasabi sauce** - a very spicy Japanese sauce

A/N: Review please! Even a favorite is strongly encouraged!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: And here is Chapter 2

Summary: Both Toushirou and Ami have secretly waited for this day for a long time. But no one ever realized that it came with a price this big. So what now?

Disclaimer: Tite Kubo owns Bleach. I own only the Ninja side of Soul Society, nothing else.

Happy birthday, my dear sister! (12-17-2012, for those who reading this later that this date.) I asked which story she wanted me to update for her birthday, and she said "Winter Rose", so viola!

~2~2~2~2~

Chapter 2: Day of Reckoning; The Surprising Reunion

Half of the Tenth Division office was a mess, but the other half was clean.

"Matsumoto...do I need to tell you a million times?! Clean up your side of the office!"

"But Taichou, I don't see the reason to!"

"I told you yesterday. Today we are having a very important visitor. The Soutaichou said that we all need to get our respective divisions cleaned. First impressions can work wonders, Matsumoto."

"Who is this visitor?"

"Can't tell. It's top secret."

Matsumoto started to whine and put on that dreadful puppy-dog face. But, Hitsugaya wasn't about to give in so easily.

"Matsumoto, trust me. If I could tell you, I would have already," Hitsugaya said. "You'll know when they get here."

"What time are they coming, Taichou?"

"No later than 9:30 this morning."

Matsumoto did a double take at the clock. "It's 7:30 right now!"

"Exactly, we have two hours, and the office is the only place here in the Tenth Division left to clean. So, get moving, Matsumoto. Since I have no paperwork, I am going to take the opportunity to clean out my desk."

The two got to work. As Toushirou was cleaning out his desk, he came across many items. Pens, blank paper, stuff like that. But there was something else that caught his eye.

A letter.

Just judging by appearance, he could tell that it was very old. The parchment it was written on and the envelope were both a bit yellow and dirty. It was also crumpled a bit and there were tear stains on it. But one thing really and truly caught his eye.

There were tiny stains of dried blood on it.

He didn't know why, but just seeing this letter made Toushirou feel weird, but not in a good way.

Matsumoto turned to her Captain. "Hey, Taichou, I'm done cleaning my side of the office." She paused, seeing him stopped right there, seeing him sway back and forth a bit. "Taichou?"

Toushirou snapped out of his fantasy (if you could call it that) and immediately noticed his Vice-Captain standing there.

"Gomen ne, Matsumoto," he said, unusually gentle. "Good job. Now, clean out your desk."

"Yes, Sir," she replied, turning to do so without question. 'What was that about?' She thought. 'He's never been like that before...'

Hitsugaya inwardly let out a sigh of relief. 'That was too close...'

*Flashback; Seven-Nine Years Earlier*

"Okaa-san!"

"Don't shout Toushirou," Hikari gently told her young grandson, who was around eighteen at the time. "Your mother is tired."

Ameko turned to her only child and son and smiled blearily, his father Hisoka guiding him by the elbow. Her hair was mused and her face lacked energy. However, Toushirou seemed to have enough for them both.

"Can I see?" Toushirou politely and quietly asked. Hisoka grinned at his son's abundance of manners.

After sinking into the couch, Ameko held out the blundle of blankets to Toushirou. "Meet your new baby sister..."

Toushirou blinked. "What's her name?"

"Her name is Ami."

"Ami.." The same sounded like sweet sugar on his tongue. He plopped beside his mother on the couch. The baby was asleep, peaceful. Toushirou touched his sister's soft, white hair and whispered, "I will be the best big brother ever."

From that day on, he vowed to protect her until the day she died.

*End Flashback*

Ami...

Even if he didn't know if he had a sister or not, the name still sounded like it did seventy-nine years ago. Whenever he thought about it, he would immediately fill up with gentle happiness. His anger would automatically cease to exist at that moment. Whenever he said it or whispered it, it tasted like the sweetest watermelon.

If this Ami existed, he would have to find her. He had this weirdest feeling that he couldn't live very long without this girl. Sister or not...

He would find her.

~8:10 AM~

An hour later, Matsumoto was done cleaning her desk. Before they left, Matsumoto secretly slipped the old letter into her shihakusho to read later. After doing so, she took a glance at a picture. It looked like her Taichou when he was younger and a little girl, with white hair, just like him.

_'Could he...?!'_ Matsumoto shook her head. _'No...He couldn't have a sister...He doesn't seem the type...'_

Putting the matter in the back of her mind, she followed her Captain to the Division 10 Mess Hall, where the entire Division was gathered. The reason for this? Matsumoto didn't know. Hitsugaya-taichou merely told her to order the entire Division to gather in the Mess Hall at 8:00 AM sharp. She just did as she was told.

"So what's the deal of waking us up so early in the morning, Fukutaichou?" One division member asked her, breaking her train of thought.

"I don't have an accurate picture, either, Kawamoto-san," she told him. "I was just following Taichou's orders. Just go sit down, okay? he'll tell us all in a minute or too. Why else would he be here?"

After patiently waiting for the entire hall to quiet down, Hitsugaya silently took a deep breath.

"Many of you are wondering why Matsumoto woke you up so early in the morning," Hitsugaya began. There were many nods and a silent "yes" all around before he continued. "The Soutaichou has called a city-wide Yellow Alert, starting at 0830 hours today."

There were many murmurs. _'A Yellow Alert? Whenever the Soutaichou declares a Yellow Alert like this, it's not good,'_ Matsumoto thought. _'It can't be...a new enemy?'_

"Demo, Taichou," Matsumoto started, "what's the reason for this?"

Hitsugaya did not look at her. His young face remained stoic, like always.

"Aizen has escaped from his prison..."

A dead silence rang throughout the entire hall. Every single Shinigami, male and female, turned their head toward their Taichou, whose face remained unembarrassed and un-amused.

"You think I'm kidding, don't you? I'm not. Aizen somehow found a way to escape and is currently hiding and recuperating in Hueco Mundo, thus the Yellow Alert, and not Red."

No one questioned the young Shinigami, but they paid more attention to him. No one wanted to get a lecture from their captain for not following orders to the exact letter. Yellow Alert was a very serious condition for the Sereitei to go into.

"You all have precisely ten minutes to finish up here. Then you all must go your posts. No exceptions." He turned to his Lieutenant and quietly said, "Matsumoto, stay here and make sure every single one of them gets to their post and nowhere else."

Once she nodded in confirmation, the white-haired Shinigami turned towards the shouji doors and walked out, closing the doors behind him.

~9:30 AM~

"Each and every one of you has cleaned your respective division barracks, correct?" The Soutaichou asked.

Nine "Yes, Sir"s sounded.

"And what about Divisions Three, Five, and Nine? Have those barracks been cleaned as well?"

"Yes, Sir," Soifon confirmed. "I filled in all three Lieutenants yesterday morning."

"Well done, Soifon-taichou," the Soutaichou continued. "And have all Divisions been notified about the Yellow Alert?"

Ten more "Yes, Sir"s sounded again.

"Again, Sir, I also filled the three Lieutenants about that yesterday morning, as well," Soifon piped in.

Yamamoto nodded in confirmation.

"Now, about the visitor we are expecting today, any minute now, in fact..."

"I hate to break in and interrupt you, Soutaichou, but who is it exactly?" Kurotsuchi asked. He was dying to know ever since the meeting last week.

"You'll know when they get here," the Soutaichou answered bluntly.

"Can you at least give us some type of background on them? Who are they?" Kurotsuchi piped back.

"Alright, as you wish," the Soutaichou gave in. "Do any of you recall sixty-eight years ago, when an alliance of ours broke apart in a violent shatter?"

It took a while for the other Captains to respond to this.

"Of course," Ukitake answered. "That certain alliance lasted for thirty years until something broke us apart, if I'm not mistaken."

"It did last thirty years," Yamamoto continued. "Excellent memory, Ukitake-taichou, but do you remember who we were in alliance with?"

There was a short silence as everyone started to think.

_'Sixty-eight plus thirty...that's ninety-eight years ago...'_ Hitsugaya thought. _'That's around the time I was born...'_ This started to worry him. _'Oh come on, calm down, Toushirou. It's just a coincidence, nothing more...'_ He snapped his attention back to the real question. _'But...sixty-eight years ago, that's when the Shinobi Thirteen started to ignore us, right?'_ He lightly gasped. _'That's it...The Shinobi Thirteen was our ally...'_

Before he could speak up, Kurotsuchi piped in. "Wasn't it the Shinobi Thirteen?"

"Yes, it was," the Soutaichou answered. "That is who will be coming today."

Soifon entered into the conversation, "Surely not all of them, Sir!"

"No, just the Hokagechou and a representative," Yamamoto reassured them. "A very important representative..."

Suddenly, one of the guards who constantly stood outside the doors while the Captains were in their meeting came in from one of the side doors.

"Yes? What is it, Kinomoto-san?"

"You told me not to bother you, Sir, unless they were here outside these very doors," Kinomoto said in a low voice.

"Oh, yes, very well," Yamamoto said. "Send them in."

Two Ninjas entered.

The first was quite tall, as tall as Yamamoto himself. He had gray-white hair and a four scratch marks over his right eye. He had golden-brown eyes and wore a long-sleeved, ankle-length coat, complete with a hood, which he was not wearing. He wore his white-ribbon-ed forehead protector around his neck.

His facial expression and his posture suggested that he was a man of power and authority. He also had the impression that you did not want to make him angry, lest you want to see his temper or his strict nature.

The second ninja was, surprisingly to the nine captains besides Yamamoto, for some odd reason, a young girl. She had a certain, familiar lack of height, long white-silver hair and turquoise like shone like the ocean, complete with a Chinese-style light blue dress and black Capri's under it. She wore her navy-blue-ribbon-ed forehead protector on the top of her head like a headband.

Her facial expression and posture suggested that she was a bit frightened at all the strangers in the room. She had the impression that you did not want to make her scared, lest you want to be punched harshly in the face.

There was a seemingly long period of silence as the ten Captains observed the two Ninjas that stood before them. The girl looked very familiar to Ukitake and Hitsugaya, and although Toushirou couldn't place his finger on it, Ukitake could. Yet, he kept silent about it.

"Hoshimoto, my brother," Yamamoto announced. "How are you fairing today?"

The old ninja, Hoshimoto, nodded. "Well, and you?"

"Same."

Hoshimoto glanced around the room. Some of the old Captains were still there; three spots were currently empty, though it did not surprise him. He was notified of Aizen's betrayal; therefore, he knew all the details. He was notified of the youngest Captain, a prodigy, and he was amazed at the resemblance between Hitsugaya and his sister. They could be mistaken as twins.

"And this is?" Yamamoto asked. "Is this her?"

"Yes, she is," Hoshimoto said.

"Truly?"

"Yes."

"Remarkable...she looks just like her brother..." Yamamoto commented.

Hitsugaya Toushirou couldn't take his eyes off the girl. There was something familiar about her. He just couldn't figure it out.

"Don't be deceived, my brother, she's well qualified," Hoshimoto said, with a hint of pride in his voice.

"I won't..." Yamamoto said. He turned to the girl. "State your identification."

"Hitsugaya Ami, sir, Jounin-level Ninja, Registration Number 250642," the girl stated, as if she rehearesed, bowing the whole time.

Something inside Toushirou snapped. Yet Yamamoto, nor anyone else felt the same.

"Remarkable...Jounin-level at her age," Soifon muttered. A few of the Captains were thinking the same thing.

"Is she really his sister?" Yamamoto asked.

"Yes...you heard her give her identification information..."

"Ahh, yes, I see..." Yamamoto said. He turned to the nine Captains. "We have the key to renew our Alliance Contract. Hoshimoto and I will go into the next room and discuss the matters without any distractions." The nine nodded.

Hoshimoto turned to them also, and said, "I know none of you are in my jurisdiction, but please, keep watch over our young friend," he motioned to a kneeling Ami, "and keep her safe from any danger. She is a very valuable asset. You do have my permission to ask her questions, but nothing too personal..." The nine captains nodded and the two department Heads went on their way.

~9:37 AM~

Seven minutes had passed and Ami was getting tired of kneeling. She had a high tolerance of pain, but her nervousness and her fidgety habits were making her pain tolerance lower a bit. Okay, a lot.

She was saved by the man in the pink overcoat. "You don't have to keep kneeling, you know," he said. "You can stand up."

She gave off a small nervous smile and nodded, standing up from her kneeling position. She realized with a start that her fidgety behavior was showing on the outside when the taller woman gently commented, "Talk to her, everyone. It helps with nervousness."

"Is it that bad?" Ami asked, quietly. Unohana gently nodded. Ami lowered her head in shame. She was supposed to be a Ninja, to be a Jounin-level Ninja, and here she was showing her nervousness, which was a dead giveaway as a weakness.

The long white-haired man gently asked her, "Do you have any color or design preferences?"

Ami startled a bit at the question. She never had anyone ask her that out of the blue. She felt her face turn pink before answering, "Blue, any shade, and I really like snowflakes."

"I prefer pink and flowers," Kyouraku said, "but that's a nice combination too."

Ami softly smiled.

The shorter woman spoke up. "When did you first become a Ninja?"

"Two years ago, ma'am," Ami said, with more confidence that none of these people were bad.

"When did you become a Chunin?" Soifon asked again.

"One year later."

"And a Jounin?"

"One year after that."

"And how old are you?" Soifon asked once more.

"I-I'd rather not say, Ma'am," Ami answered, stuttering a bit.

"'A true lady never reveals her age'," Soifon quoted. "Excellent."

Ami smiled and nodded at the comment. _'I think I just pleased Soifon-taichou, one of the strictest Captains in the Gotei Thirteen. So far, so good. I've won over Ukitake-taichou and Kyouraku-taichou and it looks like everyone else...'_

The clown-like Captain spoke up, startling her and frightening her too, "I think she'd make an interesting test subject."

Everyone, even Kuchiki, looked at him in alarm, until he was kicked in the face by a very angry child prodigy Captain.

"Knock it off," he said, angrily and quietly. "You're not making a very good first impression."

Ami didn't know what to think of this one. She hadn't won him over yet and it seemed like he was angry.

"Listen...I need to ask you something. I want you to answer it truthfully. I know it's personal, but I just need to know." Ami nodded at him. He looked like the one in her dream last night. "Do you have a brother?"

Ami was thrown off completely at the question...yet she answered anyway.

_'We'll be together forever, right, Nii-chan?'_

_'Yeah...'_

_'You promise?'_

_'Pinkie promise.'_

"I-I think so, but I can't remember him that well...w-why?" She asked, dreading his answer.

"I think... I think I am your brother..."

Ami's brain froze...

_'You promised that we would never abandon each other! Why are you going to that stupid Shinigami Academy anyways?!'_

_'So Hinamori will stop calling me Shirou-chan.'_

He sounded so heartless when he said it. She remembered now...there promise and their fight...the day they split up fifteen years ago...

She felt hot tears (she wasn't used to hot things, just cold) fill up her eyes.

_'Don't cry...'A Ninja never shows tears'...'They must not let their feelings get in the way of the mission'...don't cry...'_

"No!" She shouted and ran out of the room...

Even though she had strict orders to stay...

"I think you made her confused, Hitsugaya," Kurotsuchi commented, trying to make a joke, but also not believing what he just saw and heard.

Toushirou said nothing...he was too ashamed...he too remembered their fight...

"She's not confused...she just refused to believe it's true," Ukitake said, sadness hinted in his voice tone. "Hitsugaya-kun speaks the truth."

"No way..." Komamura muttered.

"Are they really?" Kenpachi asked.

Toushirou hung his head in silence and shame.

"Indeed," Ukitake continued. "Hitsugaya Toushirou and Hitsugaya Ami are brother and sister..."

~chapter 3 Preview~

Rangiku: Taichou, you broke a promise?!

Toushirou: Matsumoto...

Rangiku: And to your own little sister, too?! How could you?!

Toushirou:: Matsumoto...

Rangiku: Go and apologize, right now!

Toushirou: (sighs in annoyance) Tune in next time for Bleach: Winter Rose, Chapter 3: Lost and Found; The Deep Bond Between Siblings

~2~2~2~2~

Here are the unfamiliar terms to you used in this chapter, in no classified order:

Soutaichou = Japanese term for Head Captain

Taichou = Japanese term for Captain

'0830 hours' = Military time. Familiarize yourself with it. I may use it again later on.

'Hoshimoto, my brother' = If you want to know if Yamamoto and Hoshimoto are real, blood brothers, keep reading to find out.

A/N: Review please! Even a favorite is strongly encouraged!


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